The relationship between the indicence of cerebral infarction and the hematocrit was studied using 432 consecutive autopsied patients with the average age of 77.1 years. The incidence of cerebral infraction was higher in patients with hematocrit values of more than 46%, (the average in younger adult subjects). The increase in the frequency of cerebral infarction with high hematocrit values was more conspicuous in patients with severe cerebral atherosclerosis than in those with slight cerebral atherosclerosis. High blood pressure per se did not influence the relationship between the hematocrit value and the incidence of cerebral infarction. With hematocrit values of more than 41%, cerebral infarction occurred more frequently in patients over 78 years of age than in the younger patients, but the difference was not significant statistically. High hematocrit values are associated with a higher risk of cerebral infarction in deep subcortical structures of the brain than for cartical infarctions. The pathogenetic and preventive implications of these results are discussed in the light of blood rheology.

Age Factors↗

PubMedDate not supplied

[A case of flutter-like oscillation with anti-GD1a antibody after acute infection].

We report a 31-year-old woman presenting flutter-like oscillation after acute infection. Ten days after low fever and diarrhea, she presented transient, horizontal and pendular ocular oscillation. This abnormal eye movement was diagnosed as flutter-like oscillation (FLO). Other neurological findings were normal. Cerebrospinal fluid was normal. Brain MRI revealed no particular abnormalities. Serum titers for anti-GD1a antibody were elevated. After treatment with steroid (1,000 mg/day methylprednisolone DIV), the FLO disappeared.

Acute Disease↗

PubMedDate not supplied

MR anatomy of the substantia innominata and findings in Alzheimer disease: a preliminary report.

PURPOSE: To demonstrate normal MR anatomy of the substantia innominata and its changes in Alzheimer disease on MR imaging. METHODS: Using a 1.5-T superconductive MR unit, thickness of the substantia innominata was measured on coronal thin-section images obtained in 22 patients with Alzheimer disease and 14 age-matched control subjects. Comparison of these images with postmortem specimens of human brain was also performed. RESULTS: On T2-weighted images through the anterior commissure, the substantia innominata was clearly identified between the globus pallidus and the anterior perforated substance. In Alzheimer disease, thinning of the substantia innominata was more frequently observed than in the age-matched controls. CONCLUSION: Thin-section T2-weighted coronal MR images can demonstrate shrinkage of the substantia innominata, a finding that may aid in the diagnosis of Alzheimer disease.

Aged↗